Think you've seen some nasty things in your house? People around the US mailed carcasses of cockroaches they found in their homes to the National Cockroach Project at Rockefeller University. Scientists found that roaches vary genetically by neighborhood – even within the city of New York, but whatever neighborhood a cockroach is born in is likely where it will stay. As one researcher put it:

Once they move in, they don't leave. This is a window into cockroach society and it is very much like our own.

Which I'm sure is quite the relief for human neighbors.

Cockroaches are certainly not the only creepy-crawlies that can "bug" people. The Washington Post reported that swarms of stink bugs are prepared to invade mid-Atlantic states such as Maryland and Virginia. Already, scientists have found piles of stink bugs six inches deep in some traps, and more could be on the way. The US government is asking people to report how many stink bugs they find in their homes this autumn.

Perhaps the most terrifying of the insects – especially for city-dwellers – and in danger of becoming as common a pest as the cockroach are bed bugs. The Wall Street Journal notes that they "invaded North American cities several decades ago and have wreaked havoc ever since". These subjects of the folkloric nighttime adieu "don't let the bed bugs bite" will hide under mattresses and other furniture, biting their hosts while they slumber.

Clearly, insect issues tend to vary by geography. Which bugs cause the most trouble for you? Any memorable tales in your home or workplace?